


Better than it seems

by spacedaydreamer



Category: Zero Escape (Video Games), Zero Escape: Zero Time Dilemma - Fandom
Genre: M/M, and I love it, and some roommate antics, lots of really casual carpei, post 'the cost of escape', post-escape au drabbles, safe end!junpei au, this is disgustingly fluffy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-30
Updated: 2017-03-30
Packaged: 2018-10-13 00:56:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10503081
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spacedaydreamer/pseuds/spacedaydreamer
Summary: It really was the worst possible ending- and yet, Junpei was finding that despite everything, things really weren't as horrible as he would've expected. Perhaps he was just used to coping, or maybe it was something else, but he found that this world really wasn't that terrible.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Post-ending of The Cost of Escape: http://archiveofourown.org/works/9288602/chapters/21050276

It was the day after the end of the Decision Game and after Junpei’s meltdown, and he found himself awake at an ungodly hour of the morning. Gab was still content on his bed, and Carlos was fast asleep- that was good. Despite a quick check of the clock telling him it was only 5:27 in the morning, he felt more awake than he’d ever been in a long time. After a moment of contemplation, he realized that it was because he’d actually had a sleep without nightmares, for the first time since the Nonary Game had happened.

Sitting up in his bed, Junpei started absentmindedly petting Gab. It was hardly like he could wake Carlos up, and he couldn’t turn on the TV or anything, so he was more or less stuck with nothing to do.

He considered getting changed, and taking Gab for a morning walk, but the bathroom floor was still covered in shards of glass. Well, maybe he could get started on that, then? There’d probably be _someone_ at the front desk, he was certain he’d be able to borrow a broom.

Throwing on his jacket over top of his pajamas, Junpei headed to the front and found a woman who looked like she was seriously regretting life choices sitting with her head in her hands- Junpei couldn’t blame her. He doubted he looked too much better, with bandages on his hands and arms, as well as the bruises. Actually, he probably looked _far_ worse- best to keep this conversation quick, then.

He was handed a broom and dustpan with a “just get them back in one piece”, and he headed back to the room. Carlos was thankfully still asleep, so Junpei got to work. Picking up the glass wasn’t too hard and he was able to place it all into the little garbage can in the bathroom in a matter of minutes. He’d _probably_ have to leave a note for the cleaners so they didn’t cut themselves on the glass, but for now it was good enough. Seeing as he was already fully awake by this point he figured he might as well get changed, so he threw on some clothes, wrote Carlos a note mentioning he’d gone out with Gab for a bit, and brought the broom back to the reception.

The sun hadn’t risen yet, but it had started to get a bit lighter out. They were still pretty far out in the middle of nowhere; so there were practically no artificial lights anywhere, and it showed. The sky was positively breathtaking- Junpei was certain he’d never seen so many stars in his life. He decided that he’d have to get Carlos to take a look with him tonight, once the sun had gone down. He at least owed him _something_ nice, after he’d put up with Junpei, and after everything Junpei had put him through. It could hardly take back the lives of the other teams, but… endless regret and self-loathing wouldn’t bring them back either.

Granted, it was easy to say that, and much harder to believe it. He didn’t exactly have a good track record in terms of forgiving himself, if the entire last year proved anything. He could say he wanted to ‘improve’ a million times, but until he started _trying_ , he wouldn’t get anywhere fast. Still, now wasn’t a time to indulge in further self-loathing. He set Gab on the ground and started following the old dog, who appeared to be happy to walk slowly around towards the back of the hotel lot. There was nothing much there besides more desert and a couple of old benches, one of which Gab walked up to and sat down beside.

“Feel like taking a break already, huh?”

Junpei picked him up and sat down on the bench, letting Gab pick where he wanted to sit. He ended up climbing onto Junpei’s lap after a short while, and Junpei just chuckled softly to himself. The two of them stayed like that for a while, eventually watching the sun rise, when Junpei heard footsteps. He turned his head to find Carlos walking up, waving as he saw Junpei had noticed him.

“So, this is where you got off to! You had me worried for a bit, you know.”

“Oh, uh… sorry about that. I just couldn’t sleep.”

“Hey, it’s no problem. Just give me a bit more detail next time, ok?”

Junpei nodded, and turned back to face the rising run. Carlos sat down beside him and joined in watching the sunrise, with a grin on his face.

“Y’know, Junpei, I haven’t sat down like this to watch a sunrise in _years_. We lived in a city, so we didn’t really go out much, but our family used to go camping when I was younger.”

“Oh, really? That sounds like a lot of fun.”

“Yeah… Maria especially loved to watch the stars- she always tried to pick out constellations, but whenever she didn’t recognize any, she’d just make a bunch up. We’d spend hours just inventing stories behind them…”

“That sounds… really nice.”

“It was… but, I’m sure we’ll be able to do it again soon. Oh, uh. How much did I tell you guys about Maria in this timeline?”

“I don’t think I recognize the name… is she your girlfriend, or something?”

“Oh, no, no. She’s my little sister.”

“That’s right… you had to do something for her, right?”

“Yeah. I joined the experiment to cover her medical bills, but… I think I know how to help her now. She’s sick with something called Reverie Syndrome, and Aoi explained how it worked to me in another timeline. Once we’ve gotten everything sorted out here, I’m gonna head straight to her hospital and see if I can help out any.”

Junpei raised an eyebrow as Carlos spoke, watching his face carefully. He seemed genuinely excited- well, Junpei couldn’t blame him. Reverie Syndrome was something he was genuinely terrified of, and if there was a chance that Carlos could cure his sister’s illness, then there was no reason for sadness.

“That’s… that’s great, Carlos. I’m really happy for you.”

“…are you okay, Junpei? You look down.”

Junpei hadn’t even realized it, but his face had fallen. He couldn’t understand _why_ , there was no reason for him to be sad. If was good news, so why did his chest feel strangely tight?

“I’m fine, don’t worry about it. Really though, I’m glad for you. I hope that she gets better quickly.”

“Thanks, Junpei. And hey- I’ll introduce you guys once she’s well enough, ok? I’m sure she’d bug the hell outta me if we never met each other again, ehehe…”

Carlos had started scratching the back of his head, and yet again there was the slightest unmistakable hint of a blush on his face. Junpei was amazed at just how easily embarrassed Carlos could be- was making friends really that big of a deal for him? It was endearing, in a way.

Junpei was going to say something more, to break the tension, when his stomach interrupted him. It had been a very long time since he’d last eaten, and he hadn’t even realized how hungry he was until the noise. Carlos chuckled and grinned, standing up.

“Well, looks like we should get back and grab a bite to eat, huh? We can probably just order something to the room, and hopefully later we can grab something for Gab.”

Gab had fallen asleep again on Junpei’s lap, so he ended up carrying the little dog back to their room. Breakfast was a simple affair, nothing exciting to it- the excitement came from what happened afterwards. The phone in their room had started ringing, and Carlos handed it over to Junpei with a perplexed expression.

“Mr. Tenmyouji? Yes, there’s a Nona Kashiwabara here, and she’s being rather loud. Do you know her, or should we turn her away?”

“W-wait, seriously? Nona’s here? Just give me a second, I’ll be right down.”

He hung up and immediately set off to the lobby, leaving behind a rather confused Carlos. He could hardly believe his eyes when he got there- it was indeed Nona Kashiwabara, and a very tired-looking Alice standing behind her. The moment Nona laid eyes on him, she ran up and wrapped him in a tight hug.

“Oh, thank god you’re alright! We don’t really know what happened, just that almost everyone died- I’d been so worried.”

“Wait, _you_ were worried? Do you know how much you made Ennea and Hazuki worry? I thought Hazuki was going to pull all her hair out when Ennea came home alone…”

“I know, I know… I’ve already apologized to Ennea, and she said they’re on their way over. It sounds like they were already in Nevada, they just didn’t know exactly where to go.”

Junpei sighed- of _course_ they’d come, regardless of the danger. He should’ve expected as much, really.

“Oh, Junpei, who’s this?”

Nona was looking over his shoulder at Carlos, who’d finally caught up. He’d left Gab in their room, and was looking at the reunion with a bit of confusion.

“This is Carlos- he was in the Dcom experiment with us. Carlos, this is Nona. She’s my, uh…”

“I’m his sister. Well, adopted sister, but still his sister.”

Junpei sighed and rubbed his temple- had she always been so upbeat, or was it just because she’d somehow managed to escape getting kidnapped?

“Wait, actually, how’d you get here? What happened?”

It was Alice who answered, although she didn’t look happy with the explanation.

“They just let us go. Told us they ‘didn’t need us anymore’, pushed us out the door into the middle of nowhere, and left. They’d had us in some form of cold sleep before then… no idea why.”

Nona looked just as perplexed as Alice sounded, and Junpei couldn’t blame them. Given the circumstances, it sounded like it’d been Aoi’s group who’d taken them, so why would they just let them go? Unless, they’d only been needed if things inside the facility had gone differently… Junpei decided not to dwell on that. They were safe now, and that was all that mattered.

It was a few hours later when Hazuki, Ennea and Seven arrived, and there was a tearful reunion between the sisters. Junpei found himself smiling despite himself at the scene, standing off to the side with Carlos and Alice.

“Oh, that’s right- Alice, your people know about Reverie Syndrome and how it works, right?”

“Well, we have the basic understanding, yes. Why?”

“Carlos’s sister has it- do you think you could help train him, so that he can help her wake up?”

“Well, probably. How much experience do you have with this stuff?”

“Quite a bit, apparently.”

Carlos and Alice started getting more into conversation, discussing his past as a firefighter and briefly covering Carlos’s experience with SHIFT, so Junpei moved away. He’d decided that he didn’t want to know what’d happened on the other timelines- it would only make him more upset, in the end. He couldn’t switch to them, so if he ended up gaining those memories in nightmares or dissociations that was one thing, but he didn’t want to be told.

To distract himself further, he figured it would be best to talk to Seven. The older detective had always been something of a confidant for him ever since he started his work last year, and he knew he could trust him.

“The hell _happened_ to you, man? You look like shit.”

“Haha, thanks. How much were you guys told?”

“Just that things went wrong, and six people died.”

“Yeah… well, you can kinda blame me for that.”

Seven put a hand on Junpei’s shoulder, and shook his head.

“Look, Junpei. I don’t know what went down, but these ‘games’ aren’t laughing matter. Whatever happened, you can’t blame yourself.”

Junpei looked at the ground. Seven was always like this, really- he refused to let Junpei shoulder all the blame from the nonary game, and he figured that it’d now be the same with the decision game.

“So… what about Aoi? Did you find him?”

There was a long pause and Junpei sighed, nodding his head.

“Yeah… I did. We were able to talk a bit, and… well, he hates me. That’s basically what I expected though, so it’s no real surprise.”

It wasn’t a surprise, but it didn’t hurt any less regardless. The thing that he figured would cut into him for the longest, though, was the disappointment. Those hurt, disappointed eyes that had stared through him- he’d never be able to forget them.

“…I’m sorry, man.”

“Don’t be. It’s hardly like I could’ve gotten anything _but_ his hatred, after all these years.”

“Junpei, that’s- I’m not entirely sure that’s true.” It was Carlos who’d cut in, apparently done talking with Alice. He looked conflicted, like he wasn’t sure if he should say anything at all, but continued to speak regardless. “I think… maybe, just give it a year or two. I don’t know if we’ll be able to find him, but I don’t think he hates you.”

“I won’t be able to find him if he doesn’t want to be found. And, I’m entirely sure that he doesn’t want to be found- not by me.”

“Then I’ll help you.”

“Huh? Why?”

Carlos was scratching the back of his neck, clearly unsure of what to say or do next.

“Um, well… if it wasn’t for the two of you, I’d have no idea how to help Maria. I figure, it’s the least I can do for you guys.”

“Heh… you really are a ‘hero of justice’, huh?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Oh, nothing.”

He was maybe a bit too naïve, a complete do-gooder, and just an all-around nice person; but that’s what Junpei found made Carlos easy to get along with.  He eventually just shrugged, and gave the other a tired grin.

“Fine, if you think you can find him, then go crazy. I doubt you’ll ever have any luck, though.”

“We’ll just see about that.”

* * *

 

The rest of the day passed by pretty uneventfully. Junpei and Carlos had to go through questioning and more medical exams, but by night time, they were finally told they could go tomorrow. Seven, Alice, and the Kashiwabaras decided to stay the night there and leave with Junpei and Carlos in the morning, so they all headed off to bed.

By the time morning came around, Junpei couldn’t help but feel a bit sad. He was supposed to be leaving, but he didn’t really have any reason to go back- he didn’t need to keep his old job anymore, so what could he do? He ended up surprising even himself when he spoke up as they were splitting, not really able to process what he’d said before the words had left his mouth.

“Hey, Alice? Can I, uh… Can I go with you guys?”

“Huh? Well, that’s a surprise to hear from you, Junpei.”

“Yeah, yeah… the thing is, I figure your people could probably help me figure out how to get more of a handle on this esper stuff, and, well…”

He’d crossed his arms and was looking to the side, hoping nobody was looking too closely at his face. It was embarrassing, but the truth was, he didn’t want to have another breakdown like those nights ago. He’d run out of excuses, and there was no way for him to lie to himself anymore. He didn’t know if he’d ever fully be able to have control over his abilities, but he didn’t want to be helpless.

“We can teach you, definitely. It’s not going to be easy, though.”

“I know that already.”

“And you’re going to have to put effort in on your own end.”

“I know.”

“Then welcome to the team. We can sort out the specifics later, but you can join me and Carlos for now.”

Junpei nodded, and he felt Carlos clap him on the back. He turned to look, and the other was giving him a bright smile- he looked positively excited.

“So, we’re gonna be working together, then? Looks like we’ll be in for an interesting time.”

“Sounds like it.”

They stayed together as a group until the airport, Junpei insisting that he at least had to be there to see off Nona, Ennea, Hazuki, and Seven. He was surprised that none of them were angry at his choice- in fact, Ennea had straight up scolded him for not asking for help sooner. They made him promise to check in as soon as he’d finished training, and then got on their flight, leaving only him, Carlos, and Alice behind. They were headed for the SOIS headquarters first, and they’d take the time to figure everything else out after.


	2. Chapter 2

Junpei was waiting outside of the hospital, leaning against a wall a bit out of the way. It had been a couple months since he’d decided to stay and undergo training, and today was a big day- it was the day that Maria was finally allowed to leave the hospital. Her recovery had been much faster than anyone could have anticipated, and while she was still physically weak, she seemed just as energetic as anyone at full health could be.

“Junpei! Over here!”

He turned his head to see the familiar faces of both blonds, Maria waving energetically from her wheelchair as Carlos pushed her along. He gave a quick wave back and walked over to meet them, unable to hide a smile at just how excited Maria looked. She was practically non-stop talking all the way to the car, and she didn’t slow down at all once she got in.

“Ah, I can’t _wait_ to get home! Finally, no more hospital food… I mean, no offense to them, but it’s _so bland._ Oooooh, let’s order pizza! How does that sound to you guys?”

Maria had taken the front seat, but had turned around to look at Junpei for approval. He just gave a wry smile, and shrugged his shoulders.

“Only if it’s Hawaiian.”

“Ugh! I _seriously_ don’t get how you can like that, Junpei. I mean, who puts _fruit_ on a _pizza?!_ Just wrong, if you ask me.”

“…tomato sauce?”

“Shut up. But I mean, so long as we get more than one, I _suppose_ I can allow you to get pineapple on your pizza.”

Junpei chuckled and nodded as Maria turned back to face the front, already excitedly rambling on a new topic. The ride took about 15 minutes, and she somehow had something to say for every second of that travel. Carlos would occasionally speak up, and she’d sometimes ask Junpei his opinion, but the majority of their time was spent just listening to her talk.

“So, what’s this place like? I haven’t actually seen it in person yet, is it nice?”

“Oh yeah, it’s pretty decent. Your room’s the biggest one, by the way.”

“Awesome!”

Maria pumped her fist in the air as they made their way to the front of the apartment building. Things had worked out simplest if Junpei moved in with either Alice or Carlos, and there was no way he was going to move in with Alice. Joining SOIS had landed him a pretty decent salary, so between that and the 500 thousand dollars from Dcom, they’d been able to afford a nice enough place with three bedrooms, and mix of a kitchen/living room/dining room. It wasn’t _perfect_ , but it was _far_ better than old apartment 201, where he’d lived while in school.

Maria was practically holding her breath while they went up the elevator, waiting with anticipation. Junpei was honestly worried that she might bounce right out of her chair and fall flat on her face. However, she managed to keep her composure long enough for them to reach their destination- apartment 612.

“Well, what do you think?”

Maria had stood up and was walking around the place, having been saving up all her energy for this exact moment. She quickly got right to inspecting the bedrooms (even poking her head into Carlos and Junpei’s rooms), then spent a while examining her own place. By the time she finally got back to the living room her smile was practically brighter than the sun, beaming as she sat down on the couch.

“It’s perfect! Although, Junpei, you could probably pick up a bit more.”

“Sounds like someone doesn’t really want pizza that badly, then…”

“Hey! You wouldn’t _dare!_ ”

“Just try me.”

“Guh, you… alright, you can leave your room a pigsty.”

“It’s not _that_ bad.”

“Alright, alright, break it up.” Carlos was chuckling, and he’d stepped in between Junpei and Maria. She had a bit of a pout on her face, but Junpei was just sporting a smirk. Carlos saw it and only sighed, shaking his head. “We’re getting pizza regardless, so don’t worry. But, she’s not exactly wrong, Junpei…”

“Gah, you wound me. I should’ve figured the two of you would start ganging up on me the first chance you’d get…”

He raised a hand up to his forehead in an overdramatic gesture, which the others just laughed off. Carlos walked off for a while, to order the pizza- and it seemed that Maria was using that moment to strike, pulling Junpei over to the couch with surprising strength, and staring him in the eye.

“Soooo…. How were things with you and Carlos when you guys were together?”

“Huh? Well, I mean, they were fine. Why, exactly?”

She gave an exasperated sigh, looked over to check that Carlos couldn’t hear, then went back to staring Junpei in the eye.

“You’re so dense…”

“Wh-what do you mean by _that?_ ”

“I meant what I said. Can you _really_ not get any hints? Or… oh my god, don’t tell me, even _you_ don’t realize it.”

“Maria, I have _no_ idea what you’re talking about.”

“And that’s exactly the problem I was afraid of.”

Again she sighed, this time shaking her head before putting a hand on Junpei’s shoulder, who was far too confused to react.

“You’re both hopeless… I guess I’ll have to help you, then.”

“…can you explain whatever it is that you’re talking about? What exactly are you going to ‘help’ me with?”

“All in good time, Junpei. All in good time.”

She wouldn’t say anything more about it after that point, so Junpei eventually just gave up on attempting to understand her. He’d realized that was sometimes for the best- she had a bit too much energy for him, a lot of the time.

“Alright, it should be here in about a half hour.” Carlos had walked back over to them, completely unaware of whatever it was that Maria had been talking about. “So, what do you wanna do? We could switch on the tv-“

“Board game.”

“Well, that was fast.”

Maria just grinned, and put her hands on her hips.

“Alright. We’ll play… Monopoly!”

“Uh…. Are you sure that’s a good idea? Doesn’t it get a little… intense?”

Carlos’s arms were crossed, and there was a bit of a worried look on his face. Maria just brushed it off, shaking her head and continuing to insist. Carlos had decided there was no point in arguing her, so he went to grab the game, then the three of them got to setting it up.

The game lasted for the entire night, continuing to play even while eating their pizza, and (much as Carlos predicted) had gotten a _little bit_ intense. He’d been the first one out, which now left Junpei and Maria in a desperate struggle for control. Maria was currently in the lead, but the margin was small- Junpei’d taken the boardwalk and park place, after all. Added to that was the fact that Maria was close to Go, which meant he still had a chance to catch up. He’d started placing hotels down on his properties as soon as he could, of course, but Maria was using the same strategy on all hers (which made trade between the two practically impossible). Barring chance cards, they were at a standstill- this was a problem.

Junpei watched as Maria rolled the dice, internally _praying_ that she’d just get a 2 or a 4. Neither were terribly likely, but those were the numbers he needed more than anything. If she hit one, then she’d have to pay up- and if he was lucky, it could give him the gap he needed to win. His breath was held as the dice tumbled to the board- 1… and a _2_.

“ _FUCK!_ ”

Maria was wearing the most irritating grin Junpei had ever seen as she quite happily placed her piece (the boot) on the luxury tax, and gave up the $100 (hardly an impact, considering she was going to pass go without a doubt next turn. The grin turned into a full-on gleeful smirk as she looked Junpei in the eye, and passed him the dice.

“Your turn.”

His eyes narrowed into a glare, and he snatched the dice from her hand. It had originally been Junpei’s intent to go easy on her, considering it was her first night back from the hospital- but if she was gonna be like this? Then all bets were _off_.

Junpei’s roll landed him on his own property, and Maria’s next roll did much the same- their next few turns were a standstill of trading roughly the same amounts of money back and forth, with little difference.

Until _It_ happened. Junpei landed on a Chance card, and drew it with one trembling hand:

‘ _Make repairs on all your property._ ’

“Wh-what? No… no, this is…”

All but a few of his properties were hotels, and the cost of repairing a hotel was $100 each. He frantically started counting his money. He had enough- but _barely_. Practically the only way he could recover was if Maria landed the ‘ _go directly to boardwalk’_ chance card, but that was impossible. Life didn’t favour Junpei _nearly_ enough to give him that sort of luck.

“Are you giving up?”

“Never.”

“Good, I like a challenge.”

The tension was heavy in the air, the two of them staring at each other with enough intensity that it felt like a fire might start.

“Uh… guys? I, uh… got the chips……”

Carlos was clearly realizing he’d picked a bad moment to walk back up to the game, and started backing away- only to find that both Junpei and Maria had latched onto his arm.

“You’re not going anywhere, you’ve gotta watch just in case she decides to cheat me.”

“Funny, I was gonna say the same to you.”

“Uh… I _really_ think you guys are taking this a _bit_ too seriously…”

“All’s fair in monopoly and war.”

Maria’s statement was final, and the two of them pulled Carlos downwards into his seat with little resistance. However, he would not need to watch long. Maria’s turn went well for her, but Junpei? He’d rolled a 12, and hit Pennsylvania avenue. And _naturally_ , all the green properties were owned by Maria, with hotels on each.

Junpei had lost.

“ _Dammit!_ I… I lost…”

He clenched his fists, and looked up at Maria. Her look of smug joy had morphed into ecstatic glee over her victory, complete with fists raised in the air. While Junpei _wanted_ to feel glad for her, he felt nothing besides the bitter despair of defeat.

“Junpei, it’s really not that bad… she’s really good at this game. Always won, even when we were kids.”

“I don’t need your sympathy, Carlos.” The words were a touch rude, but Junpei had raised one hand in an incredibly melodramatic gesture. Oh, yeah, he was _definitely_ bitter over his loss- but he couldn’t honestly be that mad. After all, it _had_ been pretty fun while it’d lasted. “I don’t think anything could let me recover from this crushing despair of defeat…”

Maria only laughed at his display, while Carlos bought into it and played along.

“Junpei, no! You can’t give into the despair, it’s just one game!”

“I’m sorry, Carlos… but it’s too late for me.”

He looked down and to the side, pulling his best ‘brooding angst’ look- when an unexpected cry broke the mood

“ _HYYYYYAAAAAGH!_ ”

Before Junpei could even react, he saw the entire board getting flipped- tiny houses, hotels, and cards rained down on him, pelting him in a mildly irritating manner. The board itself landed squarely on his head with a soft ‘ _donk_ ’ noise, and when he lifted it up, he just saw Maria grinning like a madman.

“The despair has been distracted! Carlos, get him!”

Junpei blinked, and before he could do anything, Carlos had (lightly) grabbed onto him from behind, in a mock gesture. Junpei pretended to flail about for a moment, before an idea popped into his head. He twisted about just enough, and gently blew into Carlos’s ear- the other man’s face flushed bright red, and he let Junpei go right away.

“Hey, you alright there?”

While Junpei _had_ expected to be let go, he’d hardly expected that much of a reaction. Carlos did his best to wave it off, but there was something a bit strained in his voice.

“Y-yeah, totally. Completely fine.”

Junpei wasn’t buying it. He’d noticed that Carlos tended to get a bit flustered whenever he was nearby, but he’d never actually figured out _why_. There were a lot of things Junpei was good at figuring out, but unfortunately for him, emotions really weren’t up on that list. As a result, he simply crossed his arms and gave Carlos a blank stare, quite unimpressed.

“No, you’re not. Seriously, you can just tell me, y’know? I mean, it’s not like anything you say could make things weird.”

“U-Uh, I’m really not too sure about that…”

Junpei sighed at that answer, a touch frustrated. They’d been roommates since the decision game- sure, it wasn’t like they’d known each other for their whole lives, but Junpei’d figured there should at least be _some_ level of trust.

“Just try me.”

“Are you… really sure about this”

“Yeah, I am.”

Carlos looked around for a moment, before scratching the back of his head as the blush on his face grew stronger. His voice was quiet when he spoke, so quiet that Junpei had to strain a bit to hear him.

“Well, I mean… the truth is, I… kinda like you, Junpei.”

“…is that it? That’s hardly a big deal, I like you too.”

“N-No, not like that… I mean, like… the _other_ like.”

“Oh, that’s- oh. Ohhhhhhh.”

The realization hit Junpei like a ton of bricks, and he suddenly felt _quite_ dumb. It was hardly like Carlos was good at hiding when he got embarrassed- no, this was _entirely_ on him. All this time, and not _once_ had he actually picked up on the hints.

“Look, I get that you don’t feel the same way about me- that’s why I didn’t want to say anything, I figured it’d just make things awkward-“

“W-Well, I mean, it’s not like I _don’t_ feel _anything_ …”

“…huh?”

It was Junpei’s turn to blush now, just a faint touch of crimson lighting up his cheeks.

“I-I mean, uh… I definitely don’t _hate_ you, at least. I think you’re really nice.”

“Junpei… um, thanks?”

It was clear that Carlos didn’t really know how to take Junpei’s last statement, and in all honesty, he wasn’t even entirely sure what it meant. Hell, he wasn’t even really sure how he actually felt about Carlos! He was nice, yes, but did Junpei like him in the same way?

Well, he didn’t _not_ like him?

“Uh, look… whaddyou say we just, um… give it a bit of time? Y’know, see where things go…”

He couldn’t really commit to anything, not when he had no idea what his own actual feelings were, but he at least liked Carlos enough to give it a shot. That had to mean _something_ right?

“That sounds nice, I’d like that.”

The blush had started to fade from Carlos’s cheeks, replaced by a genuine smile. Junpei felt his heart speed up a bit when he looked at him- something about Carlos was just genuinely nice, and calming. They stood there in silence for a bit, before a voice killed the mood.

“ _Finally_. Geez, I thought you guys would _never_ say something.”

Maria was leaning against a wall behind them- Junpei hadn’t even realized she’d left the room for a bit, but she now seemed quite self-satisfied. It hit Junpei that this had to be what Maria had mentioned earlier, hinting about ‘hints’. It seemed like he really had been the only one completely oblivious to things… he felt his face flush up once more, but he tried to wave off her comment.

“Yeah yeah, meddler.”

“That’s me!”

Her grin was ear to ear, and it was only broken by a yawn. Carlos took that as a sign to look at the clock- it was past midnight, much to all of their surprise.

“Well, you should probably be getting to sleep.”

“Oh come on, I’m hardly tired!”

“Yeah, but it’s your first day home from the hospital. I can’t let you go messing up your sleep schedule already.”

Maria grumbled, but offered no further resistance. She seemed to have realized that it would be futile, so she yawned again, tossed a quite ‘g’night’ over her shoulder, and walked off to her room.

“Well, I think I’m gonna go to sleep as well- got work in the morning, y’know?”

Carlos fiddled with his earlobe a bit as he spoke, and Junpei just gave him a smile and a nod.

“Yeah, no problem. I might do the same.”

They nodded to each other, and turned in the direction of their doors- but Junpei paused.

“Hey, uh, Carlos?”

“What is it-“

Carlos froze up when Junpei leaned up, quickly leaning up to plant a peck on his cheek, then darting into his own room so that Carlos couldn’t see how red his face was. He managed to call out a ‘good night’ through the door, and heard a faintly croaked ‘y-you too’ from the other side.

Collapsing on his bed was about all he could do at that point, so he flopped forwards while trying to ignore the head radiating from his face. It was a bit embarrassing to think about, and he was awkward as all hell… but Junpei really didn’t mind the thought of spending more time with Carlos. In fact, it actually seemed… rather nice. They didn’t have to be dating to get along well, and… he didn’t exactly dislike the notion of dating. It could be nice.

He fell asleep with those thoughts in his mind, into a peaceful dreamless slumber that brought him a strange, warm feeling.

Even if this timeline wasn’t great, it really was better than it seemed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first post-ending fic, done! I've been working on this one for ages, but it kept getting delayed from school (and also me distracting myself xD). But hey, it's out! These after endings are either gonna be pretty lighthearted and cute or heavy on the angst, and this one is clearly the former, because by god they need some cute in their lives. Let them be happy. (I say, while planning angst.)
> 
> Also, activity might stay spotty for a while- gotten totally caught up in playing the nonary games, I absolutely /love/ all the voices for the 999 cast. I just keep replaying parts to hear them talk, and especially Junpei. His voice just fits so well, imo.
> 
> But, enough of that tangent. As always, thanks a million for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it! And, I hope you look forwards to the next one!


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